Working with East Midlands Homes and Grevayne Properties, Planning & Design Practice Ltd has secured planning permission for 33 affordable homes on land on the boundary with Shipley Country Park, in Heanor, Derbyshire.
Old Coppice Side lies to the southwest of Heanor and the road benefits from pedestrian access into Shipley Country Park. The site itself extends behind roadside houses and will provide a mix of one, two and three-bedroom homes together with parking and landscaping.
The site proved challenging but in the end planning permission was forthcoming. We are pleased to have partnered both East Midlands Homes and Grevayne Properties and special mention should go to Andy Dudden from Grevayne whose dogged determination helped to push the approval through after long delays over viability and the S106 Agreement.
Developing brownfield sites is never easy but this site is very well located to provide a good residential environment with many facilities and amenities nearby. Whilst this is a 100% affordable housing scheme for rent, we still had to prove that the abnormal costs associated with the development of this site added to building costs to the extent that S106 off-site payments would not be required. The fact that the development was using public money did not prevent the council for asking for money towards schools, open space, and health services. One of the anomalies of the current system is that I can convert existing buildings into market housing under permitted development and not have to pay S106 costs. A clear overall of the system is required to exempt affordable housing from S106 payments. Lets see what the new white paper on planning does!
We work with developers of all sizes, from small companies working on one property at a time to large housebuilders and commercial organisations where multi-million pound schemes are the norm.
Our core planning and architectural expertise is supported by specialists in Heritage and Urban Design. We always think innovatively, and a collaborative approach is at the heart of what we do.
For more information, or to discuss how we could help with a specific project or property please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
